"Alcantara City" In Shanghai Shows Company's Reach Across Industries

MILAN, May 4, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Alcantara, the Italian company that outfits the interiors of the world's most prestigious cars, recently teamed up with some of its leading brand partners at the Shanghai Auto Show to create "Alcantara City," a creative art show celebrating the beauty of Alcantara materials.

With support from luxury auto manufacturer Maserati, the high-end home furnishing brand Molteni, Sennheiser headphones and fashion designers Ricostru and Plore, Alcantara demonstrated the design potential of its materials to designers, fashion experts and representatives of the global auto industry.

This was the second consecutive year that Alcantara has held a brand event at the Shanghai Auto Show, underscoring its special relationship with the global auto industry.

"In Shanghai, we revealed the magic of Alcantara and there is nothing better than art to express the emotional beauty of our material," said Andrea Boragno, CEO and chairman of Alcantara. "Our unique material can be applied to a wide range of industries: from automotive to fashion, from home décor and interior design to consumer electronics."

The entire exhibit was designed in Alcantara material which was die-cut into tree and building shapes to create a modern "Alcantara skyline." Onstage, a stunning Maserati GranCabrio MC with Alcantara interiors told the automotive story alongside an Alcantara-covered Molteni couch illustrating home decor applications for the material.

Actors were dressed in Alcantara-made clothing while using hi-tech accessories with soft Alcantara finishes on smart phones, tablet covers and Sennheiser Momentum on-ear headphones.

"Designer efforts to enhance the customization of our material have allowed us to consolidate our presence in traditional market segments like the auto industry and enter and grow in new ones like consumer electronics," Boragno noted. "By combining aesthetic, sensory and functional properties – all with full respect to the environment – Alcantara has the unique ability to make people's everyday lives more pleasant which, in turn, contributes to their quality of life."

Alcantara material is well-known for its versatility, high quality, creative style and advanced technology. It is favored by many leading global brands.

The cooperation with Maserati is an example of Alcantara's importance in the automotive industry, where the "Made in Italy" material is appreciated for its unmatched technical performance and described with characteristics such as lightweight, breathability, resistance, comfort and grip.

The collaboration with Molteni demonstrates Alcantara's leading role in high-end furniture design, confirmed also by other collaborations with leading designers and artists, as well as the numerous design and art initiatives carried out by Alcantara throughout the world.

Alcantara's "Technology of Dreams," for example, just opened in Milan as part of Expo Milano 2015. In late March, an Alcantara-commissioned exhibit on the design aspects of daily life opened at the MAXXI Museum in Rome.

The company's partnership with Sennheiser is an example of Alcantara's presence in the consumer-electronics industry, which is paying close attention to the aesthetic comfort of end users.

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About Alcantara^® material

Multiple souls, countless applications, unique sensations, sustainability and distinctive Italian style in a unique material: Alcantara. Beautiful, elegant, as soft as silk and versatile as wax, Alcantara is delicate, but only apparently. As certified by extensive laboratory testing, the material, in fact, is characterized by unrivalled strength and durability. This unprecedented combination of sensoriality, aesthetics and functionality makes Alcantara the preferred choice of all those who want to fully enjoy the products they use on a daily basis, with total respect for the environment. Alcantara has been certified Carbon Neutral since 2009.

Alcantara partners with top and high-end brands in various fields. Whether it is an outfit, a hand bag, a sofa, the seat of a car or a tablet cover, it turns everything it touches into something unique and unrepeatable. Alcantara has an impressive technological know-how that allows it to satisfy both technical and style-related needs. Thanks to its Applications Development Centre, Alcantara can develop colours and products upon request, following the most complex briefs. It is an extraordinary achievement, made possible by the continuous merge between Italian craftsmanship and cutting-edge innovation.

Alcantara S.p.A. – www.alcantara.com

Founded in 1972, Alcantara represents a prime example of Italian-produced quality. As registered trademark of Alcantara S.p.A. and result of a unique and proprietary technology, Alcantara^® is a highly innovative material, offering an unrivalled combination of sensory, aesthetic and functional qualities. Thanks to its extraordinary versatility, Alcantara is the choice of leading brands in a number of application fields: fashion and accessories, automotive, interior design and home decor, consumer-electronics. These features, together with a serious and certified commitment in terms of sustainability, make Alcantara a true icon of contemporary lifestyle: the lifestyle of those who want to fully enjoy their everyday life, respecting the environment.

Since 2009 Alcantara is certified "Carbon Neutral", having defined, reduced and offset all the CO₂ emissions derived from its activity. In 2011 the analysis was extended to the whole product lifecycle, including also use and disposal phases ("from cradle to grave"). To mark out the path of the company in such a field, every year Alcantara draws up and publishes its own Sustainability Report, certified by TÜV SÜD international authority and available also on the corporate website.

Headquartered in Milan, Alcantara production site and R&D department are located in Nera Montoro, in the heart of Umbria Region (Terni).

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